Tribune's Relations With The CW
Beginning in July 2008, several Tribune-owned CW affiliates began to de-emphasize the network branding in favor of one with a stronger local identity, either on-air or through their websites (e.g., WPIX in New York re-branded from "CW 11" to "PIX 11"). The re-branding initiative lead to speculation that Tribune's overall relationship with the CW Television Network had become strained, particularly after Tribune's announcement of an affiliation shift at its KSWB-TV in San Diego from CW to Fox in the fall of 2008.
The following table lists the re-branding of 9 Tribune-owned CW affiliates:
| Market | Station | Former Branding | Current Branding | Other Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York City | WPIX | CW 11 | PIX 11 | Upon the re-branding, the station became "PIX 11" (pronounced "picks"), utilizing a modernization of WPIX's classic "circle 11" logo. |
| Los Angeles | KTLA | KTLA 5, The CW | KTLA 5 | With the branding change, KTLA would add a modernized version of its former "5" logo, which was used from 1980 to 1997. |
| Washington, D.C. | WDCW | The CW Washington | DC 50 | The "DC 50" logo incorporates a silhouette of the Capitol Building dome. |
| Denver | KWGN-TV | CW 2 | Colorado's Own Channel 2 | KWGN was the first Tribune CW station to change branding, unveiling a "2" identity on July 7, 2008. Between March 2009 and Spring 2010, the station branded as "The Deuce" in an attempt to attract a younger audience. |
| Miami | WSFL-TV | CW South Florida | SFL-TV | WSFL-TV branded as "SFL" from 2008-2012, with the "S" of the logo resembling the nameplate of the co-owned South Florida Sun-Sentinel newspaper. |
| St. Louis | KPLR-TV | CW 11 | KPLR 11 | For a time after this branding change, the station returned a Gateway Arch motif seen in previous KPLR logos. |
| Indianapolis | WTTV | CW 4 | Indiana's 4 | The station's red-and-white logo features the stars-and-torch pattern found on the Flag of Indiana. |
| Hartford | WCCT-TV | CW 20 | WCCT-TV | The station, as WTXX, used the 'txx' branding from Fall 2008 to March 2010, when they adopted "The CT" branding, which remained until March 2012 (its call sign changed to WCCT-TV in June 2010; this became the branding as well in March 2012). |
| New Orleans | WNOL-TV | New Orleans' CW 38 | NOLA 38 | "NOLA" is an abbreviated reference to New Orleans, Louisiana; a fleur-de-lis, a common symbol of the city and state's French heritage, is incorporated in the station's logo. |
Three Tribune-owned CW stations that dropped their CW branding would later reinstate it: Houston's KIAH, when changing its call sign from KHCW in 2008, adopted a "Channel 39" branding before rebranding back to "CW 39" in March 2011; Dallas' KDAF would also change branding in 2008, from "CW 33" to "KDAF 33" and later to "The 33," before reverting back to "CW 33" in 2011. KRCW-TV in Portland, Oregon, which had branded "Portland's CW" at the network's launch, became "NW 32 TV" in 2009; it reinstated CW branding as "Portland's CW 32" in 2012. Some of these stations (including one that has always used a non-CW branding, Chicago's WGN-TV) still employ limited branding references to the CW, either as a minor addition to their logos or as a passing verbal mention in programming promotions (e.g. "Home of The CW").
On December 8, 2008 Tribune announced that it is voluntarily restructuring its debt obligations under the protection of Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code in the United States Bankruptcy Court. The company will continue to operate its media businesses during the restructuring, including publishing its newspapers and managing its television stations and interactive properties without interruption, and has sufficient cash to do so.
On February 4, 2009 Tribune Broadcasting announced it is combining both WGN-TV's news department and cable news channel Chicagoland Television into a single news operation.
On September 8, 2008, with the blessing of the network, Tribune-owned St. Louis affiliate KPLR-TV, shifted their 9PM weeknight newscast to 7PM, moving the CW's prime time schedule to the 8-10PM block (Central Time Zone) instead of the usual 7-9PM berth. The move had 3 intentions: to counterprogram other networks' late-prime time shows with younger-skewing CW programs, to air a newscast at a timeslot (7PM) where no local news had aired in the St. Louis market, and to move their newscast away from the higher-rated 9PM news on Fox affiliate KTVI. The news divisions of KPLR and KTVI would merge one month later as part of a local marketing agreement between Tribune and Local TV LLC, KTVI's owner. Tribune's Denver CW affiliate, KWGN-TV, which is also operated by Local TV (through a LMA with KDVR), would make a similar move in 2009. WNOL-TV in New Orleans became the 3rd Tribune-owned CW affiliate to shift network programming, doing so in June 2010 after canceling their 9PM news (reruns of The Simpsons now fill WNOL's 7-8PM slot).
Read more about this topic: Tribune Broadcasting, History
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